589. A Regiment in its organization and by law possesses all the means of taking care of itself through its commander; it is the Administrative unit. The commanders should be conversant with the general duties of Commissary, Quartermaster, Surgeon and Paymaster, and the system of accountability and record established by law and regulations, otherwise he cannot properly direct his subordinates in the performance of their duties.

590. The Administrative duties of a Regiment are conducted through different officers, viz., Quartermaster, Commissary, Adjutant, Surgeon, and Company Commanders, under the general supervision of the Regimental Commander; the latter is responsible, so far as the orders he gives or neglects to give affect their duties whilst they are accountable for the management of their respective departments in detail. 

591. To give system to the discussion of the Administrative duties of the Regimental Commander, they will be considered under the following headings, viz.:

Subsistence.

Quartering, Clothing, and Transportation.

Hospital Department.

Pay and Discharge of Soldiers.

Records and Correspondence.

Ordnance.

Recruiting.

Regimental Fund.

592. SUBSISTENCE—The duty of supplying the Regiment with rations belongs to the Regimental Commissary. He is, also, in the old Regiments, Regimental Quartermaster. It is his duty to anticipate the wants of the Regiment as regards the quantity and quality of the subsistence stores, to submit estimates and requisitions for what is needed to the Commanding Officer of the Regiment, for his approval. The commander gives general instructions with regard to the preparation of these estimates and requisitions, which he alone can do, for the reason that he is most likely to know what will be the probable movements of the command, and what kind of stores will be most suitable.

593. The Regimental Commissary obtains the stores, and sees that they are issued to the troops in such quantity as the Colonel has directed. Some little foresight is requisite, as to the kind and quantity of stores to be issued, at certain times. Sometimes the Surgeon’s aid is called in to suggest what shall be issued under peculiar circumstances, relating to the sanitary condition of the troops. 

594. The ordinary process of issuing provisions, is as follows: The Company Commanders are informed from Regimental Headquarters, how many days they must draw for; they then make out their returns (Form 13. Sub. Reg.), and send them in to the Adjutant, whose duty it is to see that they are correct, and then he consolidates them on one return (Form 14. Sub. Reg.), and on this return the Colonel orders the issue to be made.

595. It may be necessary to curtail the rations, and give the troops less than the established rations, either in consequence of the limited nature of the supply, or for want of sufficient transportation. But this deficiency should be made up to the soldier in some way, either by commutation, or by an actual issue of back rations. The law authorizes the issue; the soldier has entered the service, with the complete ration as one of the conditions of the contract, and he cannot be deprived of it legitimately, except by process of law. It is within the power of the Commanding Officer of the Regiment to see that the deficient rations are supplied to the men.

596. Some control should also be exercised by the Colonel over the Company Commanders, in the management of the Company Fund, to the extent at least of preventing the fund from becoming too large, that the men, out of whose rations the savings have been made, may reap the benefit thereof. It is well enough to have one or two hundred dollars on hand, but not so many thousands. There is no merit in simply making a Company Fund, it must also be wisely administered.

597. It is not sufficient to select and issue the provisions to the troops, but the officers should be required to see that the men take care of them, and cook them properly; unless the kitchens are properly conducted and so managed that each soldier gets an equal portion of the subsistence properly prepared, the duty of feeding the soldier is but half performed. The soldiers should be required to learn to cook, and to cook well. It would be well in a new Regiment to have properly instructed cooks to teach the men, by detail, how to cook the Army rations, and make the most of it.

598. Whenever practicable, troops should have the opportunity to cultivate vegetable gardens; it enables the companies to make a greater saving of their rations, and thus improve their condition in every way, for with the Company Fund thus acquired they can purchase such little necessaries as the Government fails to supply them with. 

600. QUARTERING, CLOTHING, AND TRANSPORTATION.—The Regimental Quartermaster is the agent through whom these things are obtained. The Colonel directs what he desires to be done, and gives the necessary written orders, or approves the proper requisitions or estimates, and thus furnishes his agent with the means of supplying what is required. 

601. It is necessary that the Colonel should be conversant with the laws, regulations, and orders affecting the Quartermaster’s Department, and that he should understand the relative responsibility between the Quartermaster and his Commander, in order that he may properly direct him in the performance of his duties. The Quartermaster is personally accountable for the property in his charge, and for its proper administration, except so far as the order of the Colonel may affect it.

602. Quarters consist either of tents for the field, and huts for permanent camps or quarters, at permanent or established posts. The Quartermaster furnishes the tents on requisitions based upon the regulated allowance; it is the Quartermaster’s duty to see that the requisitions correspond to the established allowance, before the Colonel approves or orders the issue to be made. Company Commanders make the requisition and receipt for the property to the Quartermaster. The tents of the field and staff the Quartermaster must provide and be accountable for them.

603. In garrison, if a winter camp simply, where the men build their own quarters, the Quartermaster would probably not have charge of the matter, except to make the plan of the camp, and see that it was conformed to, and to furnish such materials as could not otherwise be obtained. At an established Post he has charge of the quarters for the troops of his Regiment; if there is not a Post Quartermaster, he would have charge of the Post in all the duties pertaining to his department. In the establishment of a new Post he would have the construction of the quarters, in the absence of a Quartermaster of the Staff; in a word the Colonel would use his Regimental Quartermaster to do all the duties devolving upon that department, in the absence of a Quartermaster of the Staff.

604. But the Colonel would usually require him only for the purpose of supplying the Regiment with such allowances as are supplied by the Quartermaster’s department, such as fuel, forage, straw, stationery, transportation, clothing, etc., which he would draw from the depot Quartermaster’s, and distribute to the Regiment. He would require him to take charge of all the property in the Regiment, belonging to the Quartermaster’s department, that was not exclusively in the hands of some of the Company Officers.

605. The most usual method of supplying the Regiment with clothing, or any other article, is for instructions to be issued to the Company Commanders, to send in requisitions specifying in detail how much is wanted in each company. These requisitions are examined by the Quartermaster, and if erroneous in any respect, should be returned to the Company Commanders for correction. The company requisitions are then consolidated on a Regimental requisition, by the Quartermaster, which is signed by him, and approved by his Colonel, and by such other higher officer as may be required by existing orders.

606. In armies on campaign, these requisitions would go up to Brigade Headquarters, where the Regimental requisitions would be consolidated, and then sent up to Division Headquarters, where  the Brigade requisitions would be consolidated, thence through Corps Headquarters to the Headquarters of the Army, and thus the wants of the entire army become known. At post or stations, these requisitions pass through the Post Commander’s Headquarters to Department Headquarters.

607. In cases where the amount of the articles required is not established by regulation or order, in the issue, is where the judgment and economy of the Quartermaster is most necessary. He must be governed by the necessity of the case, and the amount on hand, to prevent unnecessary waste and loss, and to give to all in just proportion; this is most true of clothing, and sometimes of articles, such as fuel and forage, where the supply is short, and not sufficient to give to all the authorized allowance. If the supply is ample, and the allowance regulated, the duty is simple.

608. Transportation is much the most important branch of the Quartermaster’s department, and its proper administration requires a Commanding Officer of sound judgment, to give orders, and an efficient Quartermaster to execute. The care of the means of transportation belongs to the Quartermaster; the details of keeping wagons, boats, etc., in order, horses fed and groomed, directing the teamsters and others employed in the care of the means of transportation, belong to the Quartermaster; to the Colonel belongs the duty of saying when the transportation shall be ready, when it shall move, and where it shall go, and when it shall stop; in short the Colonel gives general directions, which it is the special duty of the Quartermaster to execute. 

609. Much depends upon the selection which the Colonel makes for his Regimental Quartermaster; for, however, well he may do his duty to his Regiment, if his Quartermaster is inefficient, he will find himself greatly embarrassed in the management of his command. A Cavalry Regiment is particularly dependent upon him on account of the importance of the forage supply.

610. Like the Commissary, the Quartermaster requires the Colonel’s signature to his abstracts, and many of his vouchers, as an evidence of their correctness; it is the Colonel’s duty to see that these papers are correct, particularly in the disbursement of public money, and the issues of supplies. The Colonel would be held responsible for a manifest error of any magnitude in these papers, in the event of the discovery of any fraud on the part of the Quartermaster. For a more definite general idea of what is expected of the Quartermaster, see paragraph 282.

611. The most common error against which the Colonel should guard on his part, is too much officiousness with reference to this officer, and thus offending him by a want of confidence. He should, apparently, at least, possess the Colonel’s entire confidence, and be permitted to believe that he is performing the duties of the position well, and with credit to himself. He should content himself with general instructions, and leave the details to him, nor ever meddle with his subordinates, but give all his orders to the Quartermaster; in this way only can this important duty be performed with order, harmony, and success.

612. HOSPITAL DEPARTMENT.—This is another specialty entrusted to an officer of the Medical Staff, under the Colonel’s general supervision. Most generally the Colonel would require the Surgeon’s suggestions to be carried out. Whilst the immediate management of the Hospital is under the Surgeon’s control, he could do little without the aid of the Colonel, whilst it is, at the same time, the Colonel’s duty to see that the Surgeon does his duty to the sick. 

613. The Surgeon submits his plans and requisitions to the Colonel, who exercises his judgment as to the necessity and expediency of what he requires, and issues the necessary orders in the case. The Colonel directs what may be necessary with regard to the Hospital building, tents, etc., approves and directs the issues of fuel, forage, straw, provisions, etc., causes details of men for nurses and attendants to be made, and should see that the Hospital fund is expended for the benefit of the sick, and in the manner contemplated by regulations.

614. The management of the sick is left to the Surgeon, he decides who goes into the Hospital, and he makes the regulations for the government of the sick in the Hospital. He decides who are sick, and who should be excused from duty; and prescribes the treatment for them. These things pertain exclusively to the Surgeon, and are never interfered with, either in garrison or on the march.

615. The Hospital is always open to the Colonel’s inspection, and should be closely inspected at every inspection day, to determine whether it is properly conducted, and should be visited often on other occasions, for the gratification of the men, who are much pleased always to know that their condition is known to their Colonel.

617. When a soldier is discharged, he should see that he is supplied with the "final statement," in duplicate, of his pay and clothing account. The discharge is signed by the Colonel or other Field Officer of the Regiment. The papers are all prepared by the Company Commander, and sent up to the Colonel for his signature to the discharge papers. This is the manner of discharging in the Regular Service, when the soldier’s enlistment has expired. In the Volunteer Service, Mustering Officers prepare the muster-out papers, on data furnished by the Captain.

618. Where the Company Commanders are competent officers, the preparation of the Muster-Rolls and the discharge-papers of soldiers require but little scrutiny on the part of the Colonel. It is in new Regiments, where the officers are inexperienced, that all the vigilance possible is required to see that these papers are properly prepared. The absence of Inspecting and Mustering Officers, in the great majority of cases, compels the Colonel to perform this duty.

619. RECORDS AND CORRESPONDENCE—This branch of the Colonel’s duties is conducted through the Adjutant of the Regiment. The latter has charge of the Regimental books and papers, and, once fully instructed in his duties, requires only general instructions from the Regimental Commander. The Colonel should be able to give all the information in detail to his Adjutant, if necessary.

620. Ordinarily he will direct what general or special orders are to be published to the Regiment; all communications of an official nature to the officers of the Regiment are signed by the Adjutant, and transmitted by him, whilst all communications to a superior are signed by the Colonel and copied by the Adjutant in the proper book. The books, records, rolls, returns, and other papers pertaining to the Adjutant’s office of a Regiment, will require a separate volume to explain in detail how they are made out, what they are for, and what is done with them. A list of them is given under the head of Adjutant, paragraph 272.

621. The mass of the duty performed by the Adjutant, for which the Colonel is responsible, is really routine office duty, except during service in the field, when the orders for breaking up camp, the hour for moving, the order of march, the direction, the halts, the camp for the night, the means of transportation, the sick, the ammunition, etc., etc., must all be directed through the Adjutant, and his judgment and activity are brought into greater requisition by his pen. 

622. It is, however, important that the Adjutant should know, for the Commander’s information, the actual strength of the Regiment each day, and the morning reports must, therefore, be very closely scrutinized by him, and erroneous reports sent back for correction; otherwise First Sergeants and Company Commanders become careless, and neglect to note the daily changes correctly. Unless this precaution is taken concerning the reports, the Colonel will find himself constantly deceived, and a great discrepancy between the men actually turned out for duty, and the number he expected, as shown by the consolidated morning report.

623. The Headquarters in Garrison, or permanent Camp, may be provided with all that pertains to it, but on the march considerable foresight is required to take all the papers and documents and stationery necessary, and yet not encumber the Headquarters’ wagon. There are certain papers that should be rendered promptly at the required time, others may be postponed. 

624. The monthly return should be rendered promptly and correctly, no matter where the Regiment is, or what it is doing, yet it is often the most difficult, for the return of every company is necessary to complete it. Certain other papers, such as a morning-report, or tri-monthly return, for Brigade Headquarters, may be required. Companies should be required to keep themselves provided with blanks, and take sufficient with them for the proposed expedition, or contemplated absence from the post or depot of supply.

626. The Colonel’s experience and suggestions become invaluable to the Adjutant, unless he has had great experience himself, to enable him to anticipate all the conditions in which the Regiment may be placed, and prepare for all the wants to which he may be subjected. What is expected of the Adjutant is a general knowledge of the duties of all the officers of the Regiment, and a special knowledge of his own. What the Adjutant does not know of his duties must be known by the Colonel.

627. The Colonel entrusts to the Adjutant the filing of all official papers, and the care of all the books and records of the Regiment. In the field they should each be provided with a small manifold letter-writer. In the Adjutant’s book are retained copies of all the orders, letters, and instructions, transmitted to the officers of the Regiment. In the Colonel’s book he keeps copies of all his correspondence with his superiors. Small desks should belong to Regimental Headquarters, varying in size according to the means of transportation, and a larger or smaller one taken on the expedition, according to the probable wants of Headquarters. 

628. The details under this heading are reserved for a separate volume; the Commanding Officer is supposed to have learned them in the course of his service; they properly pertain to the duties of Adjutants, but the Colonel should know that he is held responsible for the Adjutant’s short-comings in all matters falling under the observation of a superior authority.

629. ORDNANCE—The Colonel is the Ordnance Officer of the Regiment; he obtains the ordnance from the ordnance department, for distribution to his command. This duty is one of considerable responsibility, and requires much attention to the loss of articles, for which the Colonel will be obliged to pay, if he cannot show by proper evidence, that they were lost without fault or neglect on his part.

630. Usually the Colonel details a competent non-commissioned officer to perform the duty of Ordnance Sergeant, whose sole duty it is to look after the ordnance for which the Colonel is responsible, and to see that it is taken care of. It is his duty to keep the Colonel constantly informed of all the ordnance on hand, and the condition it is in; what issues have been made, what requisitions have been sent in, and what ordnance will probably be required to anticipate the wants of the Regiment.

631. For his own safety the Colonel should keep as little ordnance on hand as possible. Periodically he will call on the Company Commanders for requisitions for such ordnance as they may require. These requisitions are consolidated, and the Colonel then procures from the depot all that has been called for, and distributes it to the companies. At stated intervals he also requires the Company Commanders to turn in such ordnance as they no longer require, properly packed and invoiced.

633. It is in time of War that the care of the ordnance becomes a heavy responsibility. The care of ordnance must be so controlled that the officer or soldier who has the ordnance property in charge is personally responsible for its loss; thus, if lost, there must be someone to enforce the claim, or the production of proof of the loss to free the party from payment. Thus Captains will require the men to make affidavit as to how the ordnance was lost, which they had in their possession; from such affidavit the Captains can judge whether the loss should be charged to the soldier on the pay-rolls or not.

634. By thus dividing the responsibility as much as possible, the greatest possible care of the ordnance will be secured. It is not jus t to hold persons responsible for arms or other public property, which is in the actual possession of another. During marches and engagements, through the sickness of the men, and through the killed and wounded, the greatest loss of ordnance takes place. It is the particular duty of the Captain to determine whether a man has carelessly abandoned his arms and accoutrements or not. It is the Colonel’s duty to provide for the collection and transportation of abandoned arms, and other ordnance, as far as possible.

635. The accountability of a Colonel for ordnance is the same as that of a Company Commander, in the rendition of returns. The blank forms are obtained in the same way, and filled out on the same general principles. "The Company Clerk," and the instructions for making Ordnance Returns, the latter published by the Ordnance Bureau, contain detailed information as to how these returns are made out.

636. RECRUITING.—The Commanding Officer of the Regiment is the Superintendent of the Recruiting Service for his Regiment. The process for obtaining recruits is precisely the same as that of the General Recruiting Service, applied to the locality where the Regiment is stationed. He takes such measures as he may deem necessary, and such as will secure the number of men the law allows, provided it does not involve changes of stations or unauthorized depletion of his command for the purpose.

637. If the Regiment is divided and stationed at several posts, the Colonel appoints a Recruiting Officer for each post. The Adjutant acts as Recruiting Officer for the Post at Headquarters. Funds are obtained by the Colonel from the Adjutant-General of the Army, and distributed by him to the various Recruiting Officers, according to their wants.

638. It is seldom that the Regiment is so favorably located that all the men required to keep the Regiment up to the authorized strength, may be obtained in the vicinity. If any more are needed, and it may be considered advisable to increase the number of Recruiting Stations, authority must be obtained from the Commander of the Department.

639. Should the locality fall to furnish the necessary number of recruits, requisition must be made on the General Recruiting Service. An application is made to the Adjutant-General of the Army through the intermediate commanders, stating the number required, and it will depend entirely on the activity of the General Recruiting Service, when they can be furnished. This requisition may be made to anticipate vacancies, by discharge. It often occurs that the majority of the men of a company terminate their enlistment at the same time. Such a case should be anticipated by timely requisitions for recruits.

640. The Colonel is required to render returns of the funds expended, on account of the Recruiting Service, in the same manner as other officers of the Recruiting Service (see paragraph 373), and as required by the Regulations for the Recruiting Service. The returns are made to the Adjutant-General, and to the Second Auditor. (Reg. 962; paragraph 394.)

641. REGIMENTAL FUND—The administration of the Regimental Fund is precisely similar to that of a Post Fund. (Reg. 204.) It is acquired in the same way, expended and distributed for the same purposes, and in like manner The Colonel calls the Councils of Administration, composed of the three senior officers of the Regiment, next in rank to himself that are present and available. The Adjutant is usually the Treasurer, and the money is expended by the direction of the Colonel, according to the appropriations made by the Council, and approved by him.

642. This fund is often very large, and should be distributed every two months, among the Companies, after the appropriations for the Band, and the school for soldiers’ children. If the Regiment is kept together, it is best to have a Regimental Library; otherwise, it is better for each company to have its own Library. After paying the expenses of the bakehouse, these are the only objects for which the fund can be expended (Reg. 200), whatever is left, must be distributed among the companies, pro rata, according to their strength. (Reg. 202.)

642. Returns are rendered to the Department Commander, as provided in Reg. 201, every four months, and whenever the Treasurer is relieved from the duty, according to the form given on page.

170. The manner of convening the Council, and rendering the proceedings, is given under the proper heading. (Paragraph 253.)

644. Remarks—It will be seen that the duty of the Colonel is to know the duty of all his subordinates, and to direct them in harmony with each other. As Commanding Officer, he has a responsibility that will be treated of under that heading; but as Colonel, he is the architect, his officers are his laborers, the men his material, and the Regiment the structure. He need not touch a stone, or give a hand, but he must know what each should do, and how and when. 

645. To organize, build up, and maintain a Regiment, is a matter of professional routine, depending upon acquired knowledge, which an ambitious and industrious officer can easily master, in five years’ service. Yet very few officers do so, for the reason that in times of peace the habits of the service tend to indolence and social pleasures. Officers seem rarely to anticipate any emergency by preparation, but progress in their profession more by the compulsion of promotion, which requires them to do the duty of the new grade, when they reach it. They remain indifferent to the duty of grades to which they have never been called. 

646. But whilst there is that standard in the management of a Regiment to which every commander is expected to attain, there is a qualification to which few can lay claim, viz., a  moral.control, that can direct and lead to great achievements, that can wield the physical strength of the Regiment at will, and strike the heaviest and most fatal blows with that dexterity and skill that proportionally lessen the danger, and increase the chances of success; the power to acquire an influence that inspires confidence to do whatever may be required, and principally on account of the confidence that it can be done; that great pride in the Regiment which, emanating from and fostered by the Colonel, pervades all the men and officers, and makes them believe that it is the best and most gallant Regiment in service.

648. In Artillery, Cavalry, and Infantry, whilst the general management and administrative duties of a Regiment are the same, they each possess certain differences that deserve notice, and that will be inferred from the general principles herein laid down under the head of Commanding Officer.